


Advising Dragons, advising Wolves

by escailyy



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Dragon Queen - Freeform, F/M, First Meetings, Jonerys, King of the North, Sanrion reunion
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-15
Updated: 2016-11-12
Packaged: 2018-07-24 04:48:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7494438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/escailyy/pseuds/escailyy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tyrion Lannister and Sansa Stark are more or less in the same advisor position now that winter has arrived. Sansa as sister to the King of the North and Tyrion as Daenerys' hand.<br/>With the possibly of an alliance with the North in sight now that an expectant Danny marches to Winterfell in order to meet the new King of the North. Jon worries over the dangers of winter and the safety of those he loves.<br/>What will await them all once Sansa and Tyrion meet each other again. Having been changed by war</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I posted this on tumblr already. But it needed to be posted here

“You will need an alliance with the north, I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you that” Tyrion said as they rode their horses down the King’s road, at the helm of the entourage “Northerners are slightly different from the rest of us, they believe in such thing as honor” 

“In other words: I should care not to burn Winterfell if they refuse to cooperate” Daenerys smiled at her own joke “tell me what do you know of him? The one they call Jon Snow, why would all the remaining northern houses rally behind a bastard? The reports lord Varys has given me from here are surprisingly…sparse” 

“You mean why this particular bastard and not Ramsey Bolton?” Tyrion replied keeping his tone detached “as far as I know Roose and Ramsey cost the northern houses a lot of their pride, along with the Frey’s they were not very merciful with either their friends or their enemies, you yourself have seen the result in Theon Greyjoy…Jon Snow put a stop to it” 

“Theon still refuses to talk about it” Daenerys observed, she was not entirely in favor of the Greyjoys but Yara Greyjoy was a kindred spirit and in another life, the mother of dragons knew she would have wanted the woman as a friend “Yara protects him like a bear protects a cub, what was done to him would have driven any other man to madness” she said dispassionately “but this Jon Snow…” 

“Stark, Snow, Stark, Snow, does it matter? The northern houses have sworn their loyalty to him, I’ve met the man your grace, of all Ned Stark’s children, his bastard is the one who seems to take after him the most” Tyrion wasn’t for giving the queen platitudes he continued “he is kind hearted, and honourable, but resilient. According to Varys’ little birds he left the black because he was dead and a witch brought him back, effectively releasing him from his vows.. he probably only took back Winterfell because his sister asked it of him ” 

“How do you know it wasn’t his idea? If he’s such a honorable man as they say” 

“Because I know Sansa…she wouldn’t rest a day of her life until Winterfell was out of the Bolton’s hold” Tyrion admitted, trying not to think about her, his child wife, who he’d once promised to protect but didn’t “Lady Sansa Stark, is a wolf. Jon might be a great leader but if he is succeeding uniting the north, its only because his sister is supporting his claim, Sansa knows that the game of court life is the same here as it is in King’s Landing and she is quite skilled at not getting herself killed while playing it, she’s a true daughter of the north and while you might be resistant to fire, Sansa is resistant to ice” 

Sansa Stark, the girl who’d stared at the rotting head of her father and not once had given Joffrey the satisfaction of seeing her weep. She had married Tyrion by force and been humiliated down to dust, but still hadn’t been as unkind to him as everyone expected her to be, or used him to further her own agenda. 

No, Sansa hadn’t asked anything of him during their marriage, not jewels, not power, not even another handmaiden. Which had only made him twice as guilty of the fact that all she wanted were things a Lannister like him couldn’t give her. 

“You sound wistful” the dragon queen observed with a hint of teasing in her voice “I think I will like meeting the Starks after all” 

“You know what kind of alliance will be needed to finally add the north to your side, don’t you?” 

“You suggest I marry him” 

“A strong, capable man with no designs on the throne who would rather die than break a vow he made during a moment of youthful stupidity?” Tyrion raised an eyebrow “you certainly could do worse” 

“I will do what I wish when I meet him” Danaerys said in her queenly voice “strong capable men have a tendency to often fall short of my expectations” 

“That they do, my lady” Tyrion agreed raising his pouch of wine “although for a dwarf falling short on something is always a matter of perspective” 

“And yet no man, no matter how tall ever dares to go as close to my dragons as I’ve seen you do” 

“You flatter me” Tyrion snorted “Lady Olenna on the other hand believes I have a death wish…and her new friend Lady Ellaria seems very eager to let her daughters fulfill it” 

“I find it amusing that they think so little of your ability to talk yourself out of death sentences” 

“I do too” 

“Tell me Tyrion…” Danny smiled slightly urging her horse into a trot “Is Jon Snow attractive?”

Tyrion laughed adjusting his grip on his own horse as he followed behind her “As handsome as I am dwarf my Queen!” 

In Winterfell, while supervising the repairs of the keep Jon sought out Sansa for advice after receiving a missive informing him that Daenerys Targaryen was marching north with her army, the girl whom songs called the dragon queen. 

“It seems we won’t need to appeal to the Vale’s good graces after all” Sansa murmured as she read over the parchment 

“What do you think I should do?” Jon asked his sister who raised an eyebrow at him “the last time I ignored your advice it cost us the life of Rickonn, I wanted to talk to you first before I show that to the other lords” 

“Thank you Jon, I’m glad I can help” Sansa fell into step with him adjoining to the private sitting room that used to belong to her parents “I think you should meet her” 

from the ravens they had been receiving and the sparse information they got in the north about things outside King’s landing. Jon and Sansa were informed of the basics about Daenerys Targaryen. 

She was the last Targaryen, she’d managed to hatch three dragons and had been gaining support from the common people in the free cities and surrounding islands. Some reports painted her as a majestic leader and conqueror, others as a bloodthirsty harpy with a taste for burning her enemies and feeding those that displeased her to her dragons. 

“I will, of course, but I can’t help but think that she’s coming here for a reason, and I don’t want to face another Stannis” Jon confided his worries “I dealt with that during my time in the watch and it wasn’t very pretty” 

“More the reason to meet her"Sansa murmured "Daenerys Targaryen hasn’t done anything to the north that warrants our resentment yet, she wasn’t part of the circle of power when our father lost his head, or refused to help when Winterfell needed it the most…she is not Stannis” of that Sansa was sure 

“And if she proposes a strategy that I’m not comfortable with like Stannis did? How do you say no to a woman with three dragons?” 

“You don’t” Sansa replied “you say things like ‘I need to consider it properly’ or 'I can’t accept without consulting it with my supporters first’ but you never say no, as long as you are not saying yes either” 

“You want me to stall her…I suppose I can do that” 

“you need an army Jon, a bigger one, an army big enough to repel the others and especially one that’s yours by right and not simply loaned to us by the man who sold me to Ramsey Bolton” Sansa kept the emotion out of her voice but Jon could see the slight twist of rage in her eyes “we need to do what’s best for Winterfell and…” 

“…Daenerys Targaryen isn’t married” Jon finished for her 

“I’m sorry Jon but you know its true” then Sansa forced her tone not to break as she read the last part of the missive “Tyrion Lannister is among her entourage, you should be prepared” 

“I met Tyrion once, I guess it doesn’t surprise me that he joined the enemy of his family, he didn’t give the impression of being their most valuable member” Jon said remembering the last advice Tyrion had once given him “he’s a very clever man” 

“And if the dragon Queen had the presence of mind to make him her hand, then so is she” Sansa finished reading “you will need all your wits about you Jon, he’s not like the other Lannisters” 

“I have a feeling you are not talking about him being a dwarf” Jon said squeezing her hand with care, Sansa flinched still not used to being touched after escaping Ramsey but gave him a small smile “Sansa you knew him in King’s Landing what should I expect?” 

She didn’t want to reveal too much, what could she say? That Tyrion was kind? That when he vowed not to hurt her (intentionally), he actually kept his word? That she’d slept in his bed and dressed in his room yet not once had he touched her?. Sansa couldn’t tell her (half) brother that. 

“Tyrion has a way of seeing trough men that’s uncanny” Sansa replied instead holding Jon’s stare with her grave eyes “he will look at you, and he will not see Jon Snow bastard of Ned Stark, or the king of the north, let alone a commander of the watch…no, mark my words Tyrion Lannister will look at you and see simply Jon, the boy, the person you are underneath all the trappings and that…that is something you should understand about him” 

“And yet he’s chosen to serve under a Queen” Jon hummed furrowing his brow in deep thought “she must be someone very impressive, to have his loyalty” 

“Impressive enough to marry I hope” 

“you have given me a lot to think about sister, thank you for being so kind to me” Jon didn’t answer instead he got up and kissed Sansa'a forehead in brotherly affection “…I promise that if it comes between you and me having to marry in order to obtain an army, I will always offer myself first” 

Sansa wanted to tell him that it was one of the nicest things he’d ever promised her, only Jon would take his brotherly duty as to mean he’d never sell her into marriage, only Jon could be that selfless. 

And in the back of her mind Sansa knew she needed to teach him how to be more hardened before he got himself killed a second time. But for the time being, it was nice to have Jon’s unwavering faith soothe her fears away. Yes Jon was who he was, but deep down the Stark in her that saw their father reflected in his eyes couldn’t fault him for it. 

Two weeks later Winterfell received Daenerys entourage with simple fanfare. Dressed in thick cloaks, Jon and Sansa stood in front of the great keep flanked by a number of lords and ladies of the northern houses who were there to show their support to house Stark. 

Daenerys likewise was dressed for winter, although her clothes were still designed in the fashions of Essos she cut an striking figure of yellow as did the three dragons flying in the distance, riding a Dothraki borne horse and closely followed by Missandei, Tyrion, Varys and Grey Worm, the mother of dragons let her master of arms introduce her. 

“May I present to you her grace, Daenerys Stormborn of House Targaryen, the First of Her name, The Unburnt, Queen of Meereen, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Breaker of Chains, Mother of Dragons” the man said respectfully then looking at Winterfell’s guards he added “our lady wishes you peace” 

Daenerys dismounted and nodded to her entourage, who all dismounted as well 

On seeing the woman in person Jon, surprisingly was the first to react, leaving Sansa’s side he walked to meet her and bowed his head politely once he felt Sansa follow “Welcome to Winterfell your grace, we apologize in advance for the paltry reception” he demurred “as you can see winter hasn’t been kind to our keep, I am Jon Snow, Warden of the north and this is my sister Sansa Stark, Lady of Winterfell” 

“You introduce yourself as warden, not king? Why?” Danny half asked, half demanded. 

Behind them Sansa and Tyrion tried their best not to look at each other. 

“I was pronounced King of the north only recently, why should I have you use the title when I am barely used to it myself?” 

“Why indeed? You are not what I expected Jon Snow” A smile twitched at Danny’s lips, on cue she turned to Tyrion to show him she approved of Jon and the dwarf couldn’t hold back a scoff. 

The sound drew Sansa’s eyes to Tyrion, who’d been staring at her from his spot behind Daenerys and when their eyes met, it took all she had not to run away. He was looking at her with softened eyes, filled with sorrow, not pity, exactly, it was more like grief, and Sansa didn’t want it, not when she knew her own eyes reflected her own grief for what he’d gone trough. 

It was winter, Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow were meeting for the first time with smiles in their faces while Sansa Stark and Tyrion Lannister were stuck momentarily mourning for each other with one look. 

He mourned the brave girl who liked lemon cakes and songs, while she mourned the good humored imp who’d once made her life a little better. 

They weren’t those people now and only the two of them could really understand what it was like to mourn the death of someone who was alive and well. 

“Neither are you” Jon replied back and by the sound of his tone, Sansa knew he was interested in their visitor. 

So Sansa offered them refreshments and let Winterfell’s servants lead Danny’s entourage to their chambers. 

Tyrion was only relieved to get the first meeting over with and to escape the annoying raised eyebrow of Varys, he didn’t want to answer the spymaster’s unspoken questions 

Soon they would all talk and it was only a matter of time before someone with a long enough memory recalled that for all intents and purposes, the hand of the dragon Queen was still married to the King of the North’s sister. 

…..To be continued


	2. Of beast and men

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nighttime conversations have a way of soothing even the most exhausted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear I thought I'd posted this chapter in ao3 after I posted it in tumblr...apparently not

“You said he was as handsome as you were dwarf, I assume you clearly should be shorter then” Danny whispered to Tyrion in jest as they took dinner in their private chamber with the rest of her small council.

Grey Worm and Missandei almost rolled their eyes while Varys kept looking at Tyrion with raised eyebrows (Tyrion was really getting tired of that look) “He is also humble in extreme, pardon my honesty Daenerys but you will eat him alive” Tyrion shot back making the others chuckle, he rarely called Danny by her full name and whenever he did he always managed to sound like a slightly scolding father

“I think you underestimate the man” Danny smirked “there’s grit under all that softness, if I indeed manage to eat him alive, who’s to say he won’t return the favor?”

“Ahh, all your past conquests perhaps?”

Varys was too dignified to snort but his mirthful expression almost made up for it. After all, out of all of them, Tyrion seemed to be the only one who could willfully insult the Queen and her life choices without being fed to Drogon.

Honestly Varys couldn’t understand why the dragons never snapped at Tyrion but he was willing to use it to his advantage “my little northern birds inform me very troubling things however”

Tyrion didn’t miss a beat “Littlefinger and the Vale”

Daenerys caught on fast also “the man of the brothels? The one who murdered his way into becoming a lord” she frowned “why is he allied with Lord Snow?”

“I do not know the specific reason” Tyrion and Varys refrained from mentioning Littlefinger’s strange fixation with Sansa and instead one chose to drink and the other to divert the conversation “they also speak of monsters come to life my lady, the others, undead who bring winter”

“The myths over the wall” Danny whispered her eyes clouding in remembrance “Viserys used to scare me with stories of ice monsters when I was a babe, I never thought such things could be real, let alone breach the wall”

“Regardless of his death, if Snow is here and not with the watch playing hero, it doesn’t mean anything good” Tyrion sighed putting his goblet down and requesting permission to leave “you should think about that”

Missandei, Grey Worm and Varys took that as a sign that they also should leave the Queen to her own thoughts and head out to rest, but not before Daenerys ordered them all to join her in the morning, in order to start their stay at Winterfell with good omens.

Later that night, Danny found that she couldn’t sleep, there was something restless in the air, and the mother of dragons felt unsettled by the still peace of her chamber in the great keep. Dressing in the warmest dress she could find, Danny decided to go for a walk to clear her head. Giving a signal to her guards that she wouldn’t be long, she found her way down the hall that led outside but made a wrong turn and one way or another found herself walking in circles…. until the wolf appeared

It was white, pure white like the clouds she soared over whenever she rode Drogon, it had blood red eyes and beautiful sharp canines that it flaunted when it growled at her “I’m not afraid of you” Danny chuckled crouching to the white wolf’s level extending her hand and waiting for him to sniff “see, I’m not a threat” it spoke a lot about Danny’s lack of ladylike sensibilities that for a Queen it didn’t even occur to her that a wolf roaming a castle at night should be considered wrong, after all the direwolf was the Stark sigil, as the dragon was hers.

“I’ve never seen a white wolf before, tell me have you always been different?” the white wolf cocked it’s head to the side almost as if he was telling Danny that it had never seen a white haired girl before either “ I’m a Targaryen, fire and blood, we all have hair like this, being different isn’t always bad”

The red eye wolf huffed as tough it accepted her smell and cautiously padded closer, it evidently wanted to encourage Danny to keep talking “do you know that in my life I’ve come to learn that animals are more trustworthy than lords and ladies, look at you Ser white wolf, you hunt, you sleep, you mate, you don’t want anything from me and won’t force me to do anything I don’t want to do” Danny sighed and the wolf strangely seemed to agree “that already makes you a better animal than the ones I’m surrounded by”

“His name is Ghost” a voice said from behind her “And I think he likes you” from the tone of his voice Danny summarized that Jon hadn’t been watching her for long.

“Ghost, the direwolf of Winterfell” Danny tasted the name on her tongue experimentally “hardly appropriate… But all too suitable name for him, is he yours?”

“I’ve had him since he was a pup and I find it strange to see him in this wing of the keep normally he sleeps outside my sister’s room” Jon tried to explain, Sansa endured her nightmares almost on nightly basis, Ghost’s familiar sounds outside her door helped his sister sleep soundly.

“Maybe he knew I needed the company” Danny smiled stroking a hand down Ghost’ back “one deadly creature to another” Ghost seemed enjoy her petting because he let out a small growl of approval “White wolves are rare are they not?”

“Yes, northern wolves often throw them out of their packs, Ghost was very weak when I found him ” Jon wanted to tell him that Ghost used to have brothers and sisters, that they’d died, that his wolf was the only one left.

“How lonley it must be” Danny murmured without looking at Jon almost reading his mind “to be one of a kind, knowing no other will ever be quite like you” she fingered her own white locks absentmindedly “my Drogon at least has Rhaegal and Viserion, but your Ghost, he’s just him, he’s got no other white wolf to compare himself to”

Jon had a feeling that the Dragon Queen was no longer talking about the wolf “I’ve never thought about him that way your grace, because well, he’s always had me”

“But you are human Jon Snow, you can’t understand his wildness entirely…just as Drogon can’t understand my humanity” Danny kept on going “does it ever bother you?”

“It used to” Jon replied sincerely offering her his hand to pull her up from her place crouching next to ghost “the bastard son of a kind man, I resented the fact that even Ghost, my most loyal companion couldn’t understand me wholly”

“And now it doesn’t?” Danny murmured with baited breath accepting his hand and coming to stand close to him, peering into his eyes.

“Now I learned to understand his ways, instead of forcing him to learn mine” Jon thought back to Ygritte and his Wilding allies “Feral creatures are feral for a reason…your grace”

“Wiser words were never better spoken” Danny agreed nodding “most men, tough, seek to domesticate that which was born to be free”

“And you don’t Daenerys Targaryen?” Jon whispered feeling her closeness

“No, no I don’t” and then Danny kissed him.

On the other end of the keep much like Danny, Tyrion Lannister couldn’t sleep. Winterfell itself seemed specially cold and unwelcoming for him. Considering the history his family had with its rightful inhabitants, whenever he closed his eyes visions of the Stark family as they had been on his first visit there assaulted him from everywhere.

Noble Ned, proud Caitlin, brave Robb, dreamer Sansa, curious Bran, intrepid little Arya and sweet Rickonn, standing decked in furs strong and happy. Even Jon Snow, the bastard had a place with them. He’d been the hopeful one, always hopeful.

So cursing Danny’s enforced law of sobriety, Tyrion got out of bed and headed to the one place in Winterfell he knew he’d find peace: the outlier courtyard where the dragons were kept. Looking out the stable’s door in their direction Tyrion felt a smile stretch across his face at the sight of the empty fray.

Like he expected Drogon, Viserion and Raegal caused even the brave northerners to stay away. Two of the beasts were sleeping, but one always remained awake, Tyrion knew their habits as well as anybody close to the Queen did, but unlike the others, Tyrion liked to try his luck by spending quality time with the beasts.

He called it building trust, after all he’d always been fascinated by the creatures, now that he had real dragons up close, what self respecting scholar wouldn’t try to learn all about them?. If the truth was more complicated than that, only time would tell.

“I know you are there my Lady, might as well come out to kill me and be done with it” Tyrion snorted hearing the faint pitti tap stop somewhere to his left “you’ve been following me since I passed the kitchens”

“How did you know?” Sansa’s voice materialized out of nowhere as did her face from behind a nearby wall “I’ve been quiet”

“Never could quite forget the pattern of your footsteps, for a long time they were the sounds that lulled me to sleep” Tyrion replied with a shrug “tough you didn’t answer my question, have you come to kill me lady Stark?”

“If I said yes would you even let me?” Sansa walked slowly towards the dwarf raising an eyebrow.

“Not really I owe it to the Queen to stay alive long enough to help her fix the disaster that is Westeros…after that, well, you can kill me then”

“I don’t want to kill you, you might actually be the only Lannister I don’t want dead”

“A sentiment shared by few, I am sure”

“They call you kinslayer now” Sansa muttered abruptly “is it true? Lord Baelish said….about your father” her voice paused for a moment “And Shae”

“Would it offend your ladylike sensibilities if I say that I should have killed the sadistic fuck sooner?” Tyrion rolled his eyes “that I was happy to have my father’s death in my tally and enjoyed every second of watching the life drain out of his eyes”

“No, it doesn’t offend me” Sansa’s voice was emotionless, but firm, giving Tyrion the impression that she was miles away “I’m glad you did it” there was no love lost between Sansa and Tywinn Lannister

“is it true what I heard about Ramsey Snow?” He shot back tit for tat refusing to cower under her sharp stare, he should, but this was the first conversation he’d had with Sansa Stark after Joffrey’s murder and he didn’t want it to end.

“What part?” Sansa’s hackles rose wondering what Tyrion knew of her ordeals, wondering if he too would pity her as Jon did.

“The part where you had him drawn and quartered while feeding his entrails to the ravens and drinking his blood” he replied not missing a beat choosing the most outlandish tale of her he’d heard of recent, of course he knew the kind of monster Ramsey was, but he also knew that Sansa had never taken kindly to condolences, least of all from Tyrion, her armour were her courtesies just as his was his wit.

“No, I merely fed him to his hounds and enjoyed hearing him scream” and with that she was silent, looking out to the dragons as he had been doing a moment before

A million unspoken conversations rose and fell in both of their lips during that stretch of time. So many things had changed, very few remained the same and yet, it almost felt like that day long past in the red keep before Robb’s death, when for a moment she forgot he was a Lannister and he had made her laugh.

“If you tell me to lie, I will” Tyrion said deciding to break the silence “Say the word and the moment someone asks, I’ll deny we were ever married”

“Why would you?” Sansa whispered looking straight ahead genuinely baffled “why not claim me as your wife? Wouldn’t it benefit your cause more? Your Queen has made no secret of her wish to take back the throne”

“I don’t care, I once promised to protect you, I couldn’t, therefore I broke my wedding vows first and you have endured enough broken promises for a lifetime” Tyrion said it in such a simple way, as tough it really were that easy, as tough he still saw Sansa as the child bride he’d once sheltered from Joffrey’s cruelty and not the seven times traitor who joined forces with Petyr Baelish in order to keep Winterfell.

“What’s another broken oath for a Lannister?”

“What’s another given freedom for a Stark?”

“I see” Sansa hummed nodding. Hoping he couldn’t hear the emotions in her practiced manners “can I give you an answer in the morning?”

“Sansa” Tyrion made to say something else but she stopped him

“No, please, don’t” Sansa was tired of hearing platitudes, if she had to hear one from him of all people, it would break her a bit more “I don’t want to talk about it tonight, not about Ramsey, or Jon or Cersei or even your Queen, please, just don’t”

“As you wish my lady ” Tyrion bowed his head and looking towards the dragons he had an idea “do you want to meet them?”

“The dragons! Have you lost your mind?” Sansa gasped narrowing her eyes at the little man in a way that almost made her pass as lady Caitlin “are they not as dangerous as the stories say?”

“They are, but I have reached a tentative understanding with them as of late, I can’t promise they won’t harm you, but if you are with me, they won’t mark you as a threat” which was honestly the best anybody who wasn’t Danny could ever hope for.

Sansa eyed Tyrion warily, then the dragons in the courtyard, then Tyrion again. If one ignored his deception with Shae, Tyrion had never been in a habit of lying to her, he was more the kind to hide unpleasant truths than to tell lies, that much she had learned during their marriage.

“What can you tell me about the big one?, that one there” she replied instead, taking a step forward and watching his scarred mouth twist into a smile.

Cautiously walking in front of her, he led her a bit closer to the courtyard and the makeshift dragon pit “That’s Daenerys’ mount, Drogon, pace yourself when you are around him, much like his mother, Drogon is quite aggressive and doesn’t need much provocation to put it on display, he prides himself on being the strongest and he is quite arrogant about it”

Sansa noticed that the one he called Drogon barely twitched in it’s sleep at the mention of his name but the golden dragon that seemed to be the only one awake, sensed them approaching and much like Tyrion had said, paid Sansa little mind when it caught sight of her dwarf companion.

Sansa still nodded not letting Tyrion see how frightened the beasts made her “And the green one?” She asked pointing to the sleeping one on Drogon’s left, the dragon in question stirred from his sleep and raised it’s head lazily to regard the small human and his tall companion with a look that Sansa could only describe as disdain.

“Ah, the younger brother, that’s Raegal, he’s not as wild as Drogon, but a bit more reckless, because he always wants attention, if I say so, tough Raegal tends to be a lot more playful than the rest of the family, he’s the best flyer of the lot” Sansa heard the green dragon give what might have passed for a terrifying snort if it had been a smaller beast. Tyrion rolled his eyes “he also thinks he’s the most beautiful, arrogant little chit”

“He understood you, how is that possible?”

“Dragons are intelligent things, not only weapons of mass destruction, which is why I take care not to offend them within earshot, lest they decide to have me for dinner dearest” And then at the word dearest Sansa felt a gust of smoke sweep in her direction drenching her in warm blackness that left her coughing, which prompted Tyrion to laugh

“What, *cough* *cough* was that?” Sansa gasped trying to dispel the smoke with her hand “I thought you said they wouldn’t think me a threat”

“ that my Lady, was my friend Viserion, quite the smartest beast I’ve ever met” then he cocked his head and waved at the alert cream and white dragon who once again drenched them both in smoke and cinders “ much to Daenerys mirth, Viserion here believes me to be some sort of ” toy human" he adopted behind his mother’s back, I’m sorry for the way he introduced himself but, well he’s quite possessive with his friends"

“So you are that one’s stray cat” Sansa said without meaning to while dusting her furs and her gown of all the ashes

Tyrion laughed at her description “I suppose I am, some children bring their mothers wounded animals to adopt, Viserion picked up a pet dwarf and made Daenerys Targaryen take me in”

“Does he do this with everyone?” Sansa coughed glaring at Tyrion and then back at the smug cream and gold dragon

“No, he usually burns them to ashes, I think this is his way of warning you from getting too close to me, I’m his pet human remember” He sounded proud of himself, and Sansa supposed that for a man called all sort of names during his life, it was sort of fitting that the only humiliating name Tyrion Lannister would ever willfully consent to was being considered the mascot of a dragon.

“He must like you” Sansa observed admiting to herself that she admired Tyrion’s brand of courage, again the dragon snorted black smoke and ashes which gave the Stark girl the impression of being mocked by the massive creature.

“They all like me, Viserion just thinks I’m a helpless hatchling that was put on this earth for his amusement” at his words Tyrion saw Sansa’s lips twitch and almost tilt up into a smile before she caught herself.

“I forgot the last time Winterfell was this warm, if I close my eyes, I can almost pretend spring has reached at last” and she was right, the land near the dragons was as warm as a summer day despite the snow surrounding the great keep, for her who had been born in the sunny northern summer and barely seen anything but winter in the later years, this dragon made warmth was a new experience, surreal even, the smell and sounds of her cold home, but the heat of the sun at her reach.

“Lady Stark, for all its worth” Tyrion said with a sigh “I wish I’d been the type of husband a girl like you deserved to be married off to”

“Don’t be” Sansa shrugged “you were kind to me” She made a pause and once again got her emotions under control “I’ve come to learn that kindness is a currency men can I’ll afford in Westeros, especially between man and wife, you not only gave it to me, but you did so without forcing me to promise anything in return”

“You deserved kindness” Tyrion winced at what she implied

“And you deserved not to have yours rejected” she snapped with a bit more force than she intended, it wasn’t fair but an irrational part of her blamed Tyrion for some of her old expectations, he’d made her complacent during her time at King’s Landing, he’d made her feel as safe as he could, going out of his way to avoid causing her more grief. And she’d gotten too used to it, paid for that complacency with tears and blood. It was his partly his fault that she began expecting other men be the same as him. Turning away from him Sansa pulled her mask on once again “I should go back inside, the warmth here has made me sleepy, lord Hand”

Now, Sansa could recognize that she’d been the kind of wife that other ladies would have deemed “spoiled beyond measure” because Tyrion never demanded anything of her, yet tried his best to make her feel as comfortable as possible. He’d spoiled her with his kindness and she had been too blind to appreciate that not all men were that noble.

“Goodnight then, Lady Stark. I suppose I should thank you for indulging me with some conversation” he didn’t say anything about her words, lest he derive too much hope from them and turn into a rightful ass in front of the girl he still considered his wife. Tyrion needed to be sober for Danny’s sake the next morning. And if he kept talking to Sansa and exchanging cryptic remarks like those, he wouldn’t stop drinking from his pouch of Dornish wine till winter was over in the north.

“You are staying here?”

“Yes, the dragons are good company when one can’t sleep, at least for me”

“Very well my lord” the tall girl nodded “Oh and Tyrion” Sansa said in a hard voice as she turned around to leave “If I had to chose between being Sansa Lannister and Sansa Bolton, I would chose Lannister…because at the end of the day, I’d rather be considered your wife and not his widow”

“And if I had to chose you would never have to be anyone but Sansa Stark”

“Good night my lord”

“Sleep well Sansa”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm one of those who wants Tyrion to be a Targaryen, simply because that would make him not a Lannister and by extension: not related to Tywinn + Cersei.  
> PS: thoughts anybody?

**Author's Note:**

> I am no George R.R Martin so I hope none of the characters were too oc.  
> Please review I want to know if I did them justice


End file.
